QUEEN’S PARK – Windsor West NDP MPP Lisa Gretzky used her first question of the legislative session to demand that automotive sector workers in Windsor and throughout Ontario are treated fairly, and given the same number of personal emergency leave days under the Employment Standards Act (ESA) as every other worker in the province.

“In December, this Liberal government made a secretive, back-door decision to cut the amount of emergency leave days available to automotive workers under the Employment Standards Act,” said Gretzky. “I now have almost 1,500 signatures on a petition from workers and their families opposed to this cutback, and that’s in addition to the thousands of signatures collected by Unifor.”

Gretzky was again calling for an immediate reversal of the decision made by the Wynne government, whereby workers in the auto and auto parts sector receive seven unpaid personal emergency days – three days less than all other workers in Ontario under the Employment Standards Act. The issue has struck a chord with thousands of auto workers and their families across Ontario, and prompted questions from residents during the Premier’s Town Hall in Windsor.

“I’ve had calls from my constituents who work at paint, plastic and parts suppliers who don’t have the same benefits as workers at the assembly plants, and they now have even less protection under the ESA.”

“Auto workers are hard-working people, balancing physically strenuous jobs with the demands of raising a family. They deserve the same rights and protections as every other worker in Ontario,” said Gretzky.